By Royanne Gale

You can grow it in a pot. Or small space. Where I live in Ca. The local nursery has been defying that rule. Its called a ladderless orchard. Or you can plant in.ground 2 ft. apart. You only prune on the following holidays. Memorial Day/ 4th of July/ and Labor Day. Its wonderfull. You dont get as much fruit. But who can eat all the fruit. Half falls on the ground. So less waste. You have alot of varieties to have fruit from May to November. And since the branches are not as long no broken branches and no ladder to fall from. And it only takes an hour or two to prune the whole orchard. Try it and have fun.

By Leon Shields

By Joyce Oglesby

Plentiful in Corydon, IN

We have only three trees at our home in Indiana. I have never seen the abundance of fruit still hanging and falling from these trees! And, they are more beautiful this year than I have ever taken note of before. I wish I liked them. Folks here love persimmon pie and pudding, but it's not something I can acquire the taste for. I love all sorts of foods. Intending to look for a bread or loaf recipe. Surely there is some way I can learn to appreciate their flavor. I understand they are highly medicinal, and that is typically an incentive for me. But alas, I have failed to appreciate the flavor of persimmon regardless of its benefits. We have gallons upon gallons of these off of three trees! I'm a farm gal from girlhood, and love the art of preserving. It saddens me, as I'm sure it does The Lord, to see them go to waste! So from Corydon, Indiana ... snuggle up, folks, it's going to be a frozen wet winter! Just in time for my new multifaceted mystery novel - "Grandma's Jewels and the Legacy Behind Them." Go to Amazon and get your copy. Then, get the fire going and read, read, read! It's a "Gone with the Wind"/"Legends of the Fall" thriller with a twist! Your favorite persimmon recipe, a cup of coffee/tea, and Grandma Grace! That's the way to beat this winter!

By camille august

"It saddens me as i'm sure it does the Lord to see them go to waste".... absolutely not true. Deer love them as well as turtles, possums, rabbits, coons, rodents such as squirrels, moles, even coyotes. Ive seen this first hand as I was raised on farm all my life in TN. So dont fret, God takes care of his animals :)

By jdmcchevy

By CharlotteB

My mother in law purchased and planted a male and female tree in my back yard. It is FULL of fruit this year. BUT - according to one of the comments above, the male tree doesn't grown fruit. Needed for fertization. BOTH of mine have fruit, the male is smaller and has less fruit and I did a jolly good job trimming the heck out of the trees this summer. I know - wrong time but they were so overgrown and they were FULL of fruit at that point. I'm moving within the next 6 months to my family ancestral home (restoring it)...and will be planting at least 4 of these trees....for the fruit and shade. One sad pear tree at the farmhouse...planted the day Great Uncle Jack was born in 1905. Need some Peach trees too. :)

By Gunter

I live in SW Mississippi and the house I just moved into has a Persimmon Tree in the back yard. I heard about the seeds predicting the winter so I cut 6 in half. I hope these seeds know what they are talking about because we need a good hearty winter here. The seeds were all spoons so looks like I need to purchase a snow shovel before everyone else does.

By Kim Griffin/Hurt

Could you tell me how you cut the seeds open without cutting yourself? We have a tree that is on our back lot ( we didn't plant it), all of the fruit is up high on the tree, I was able to knock one off using a big stick, the others are to high up to get. It had 5/6 seeds in it ( Is it normal for one fruit to have that many seeds in it?), I tried everything I could think of to get the seeds open, they were very hard seeds and I 1st tried a knife point and a grapefruit utensil, but they were so hard I was afraid I'd cut myself, I then tried pliers but it crushed the seed to where I couldn't identify what was inside. I would appreciate any info. Thank You

By Mary Springer

If the persimmons are ripe,open and obtain the seeds. Wash them well and place the seed in your mouth and bite the seed, as you would a sunflower seed. You put the seed in with the edges against your teeth and when it cracks.... you can remove and open with fingernails!

By Jessa

By Lorisa Buckley

I would love some persimmon seeds if anyone would like to get rid of some. I would appreciate some from a male and female trees if possible. If anyone would be able or willing to send me some in an envelope that would be marked if they are from the male or female trees. Please send me a PM on facebook for my address. I am easy to find, I am the only Lorisa Buckley in Red Oak, Iowa. Thank You in advance.

I'll send you some. The seeds are produced in the fruit, and only female trees produce fruit. You need a male and a female tree to produce fruit, so you will need to grow quite a few trees to make sure you have both. You can't tell from the seeds if it will grow up to be male or female. The trees are quite large and it takes 7-10 years before they produce anything.

By Amy Garmon

By Dawn Barrett

I would love some seeds as well..also I can send you a SASE too.. Why do we need to know the male /female gender of the seeds, and how do we plant these?? I need more info on them please. I just think they are quite fascinating!

By debra dellbringge

By native Mo

There are only native persimmons grown in Mo. This is the perfect time to find them and their juicy ripe. Look in mixed hardwood forest (hills not bottom land) and or along edges of forest. They will be cherry tomato size.

By Brenda Culpepper

I found a tree near my house. I picked up several seed tonight just to try it. I opened 3 and they were all spoons. I'll be glad to send you some seed and send you one already cut to make sure you get a spoon.

By Jacquee

By Lee Sullivan

We had persimmon trees where I grew up and looking inside the seeds after eating the fruit was our favorite part. I didn't know the knife, fork, and spoon predicted weather and I find it hard to believe since we always found all three. People who were not familiar with the persimmon didn't believe me when I told them about the seeds having knives, forks and spoons. Don't understand why they'd think I would 'make up' such a story.
But thanks to you the proof is in the pudding. :)

By Lindy too

Call it as you see it, if you don't believe it that's okay, every one has the right to see it as they choose, but my great dear uncle did this for years, (split persimmon seeds in the fall) and when he was gone we checked the persimmon seeds for our area. And they have held true to for in predictions most often. However you cannot open just one seed and get the results. It takes several seeds. For example.... in a snow prediction there are at times a few forks, knives and spoon shaped seeds that are on the tree. But, if it is going to be a lot of snow-- there is more spoon seeds than any other kind of shapes inside the persimmon seeds. Its like the Caterpillar predictions-- you can't always determine it by one Caterpillar. It takes observing many over time. But be cautious Persimmon seeds are toxic. So don't eat the seeds. As a matter of fact, this year for our area it was spoons and yes, we had already had lots of cold and snow and its just late January.

By Percy Mann

Here in SW MO, our persimmon seeds was shaped like a spider monkey wearing a tuxedo. I checked the almanac and it says we should see an increase in shoplifting with an elevated chance of winning the lottery.

By Chickenwoman19

By Purse Imman

That's just weird. Our seeds near Joplin were shaped more like sporks stuck in some beef jerky. Our pastor says that means demons will probably join the girl scouts and try to raise the cookie prices. Better stock up now on thin mints.

By bwcumberdale

Ummm... has it occurred to anybody that the reason most seeds appear to have a "spoon" shape is simply because this is the standard appearance, while other shapes are unusual variations, given that persimmons are native to temperate climates where snow in the winter is likely? Most all seeds have the spoon shape because that is their natural form. This does not indicate snow; persimmons grow in climates where snow is likely. Use your brains. Correlation does not equal causation. Oh and by the way, I have a lot of money tied up in a bank account in Nigeria, and I need somebody to help me get it out, and you will be generously rewarded for your effort...

By debra dellbringge

By oh please....

You really need to loosen up and have a lil' fun and imagination with a large sense of humor. Life is too short to be a high and dry ol' fart. That equals up to....boring! Live a little friend, live a little.

By Persimmon Pam

Spoons here in the Central Valley of California. Hopefully that means plenty of rain, cause we sure do need it!! You can keep your snow and anything below 34 degrees in the mountains and back East where it belongs ;-)

By debra dellbringge

By Danny M

I would love to have a few seeds if anyone has them, I would like to try and get some persimmon tree seedlings to transplant to some property that we have recently purchased. We had them as a kid on the farm that we grew up on. If anyone has the seeds and would send them to me, I am more than willing to pay postage, and a little for your time and effort. I am near Kansas City, thanks

By Gaye Webb

By OzarkMtnNana

When we lived on the farm there was a large grove of Persimmon Trees but they were all MALES and even though they had lots of blooms they never made any persimmons. Now we have a Persimmon Tree in our retirement home yard and I have a lot of persimmon trees come up voluntarily in my yard. But you can't tell until they are grown if they are the male or female. From what I read, if you plant your own, you will need to graft a branch from a known female tree to assure fruit.

By Glenn Commons

It may seem obvious, but what do you do with the seeds prior to planting them: dry them, let them freeze over the winter as they would do in fruit left on the ground, or what? When do you plant the seeds? How long until you can expect fruit?

They need a "chilling" cycle so it is better to put them in the ground. It takes 7-10 years before they will produce. You need both a male tree and a female tree, only the female will produce fruit. If you are interested in growing them do a Google search. There is a lot of good information.

By kcchiefs78

By Danny Mathia

Hi, I had a guy at work bring my 50 or 60 seeds, and a family from Pittsburgh is going to send me a few in the mail, so I have plenty. Thank you for the reply, and the offer to send me some, I really do appreciate the offer!

By John & Lois Amershek

We have lots of persimmon seeds in Pittsburg, KS. If you send us your address, we will mail you some.We have about 5 or 6 trees. I don't know if there are any seedlings or not. We have a "spoon" in the seed, so lots of heavy, wet snow is predicted.

By Gaye Webb

We are originally from Yates Center Kansas, have been living in Texas for many years and would like to have some seeds and or persimmons. Will be happy to pay postage and for your troubles. Thank you. Kay Crumrine. 407 w. 47th. Odessa, Texas. 79764.

By Don Kopczynski

Being a Southern California guy this is the first time using a persimmon seed to predict the weather, which I think is very "hick", but married a "hick" from Missouri which is a Southern Belle. We now reside in Caplinger Mills Missouri, we got 3 seeds and all are "spoons". Get your shovels ready and a good back brace to shovel the wet snow!! Enjoy your beautiful Winter!!!

By Seedwitch

What is it with SoCal guys marrying Missouri women? My husband is from Long Beach, I'm from rural west-central MO. I dragged him from CA to rural NE Oklahoma so I could garden and raise chickens :) he thinks a lot of the things I do are "hick" ideas, but they work!

By Nikki Ryan

By Josey

By jim nall

I'm a city boy moved to table rock lake in ozarks.
my persimmon trees have tons of fruit but when i cut them open (Nov 2013) and crack the seed in half i can't see anything that loks like a knife fork or spoon. what am i doing wrong?
The seeds (kernels?) inside are shaped like teardrops. Is that a spoon?

By Rae Piazza

Those "teardrop" "kernels" are the seeds... Those are what u need to split in half. You can't really "crack" them. Usually you get a knife or razor blade and cut them in half so it resembles a tiny clam. Then look inside and u will see the spoon, knife or fork.

By sheryl4osu

By Bernadine

I don't know how you are 'cracking' the seeds(kernels)in half, but if you split them in the center you should see something resembling a spoon, fork, or knife. Please refer to the photo on the Almanac site.

Be sure that you are cutting the seed right in the middle, evenly along the seam of the seed coat. Also, make sure that the fruit is ripe; it is possible that the seeds have not fully developed yet (that's our best guess).

If you've cut the seed properly and the fruit is mature, we're stumped. Could it be that it's just the way your plant grows? There will be some variability in seeds depending on cultivar and species of persimmon (American vs. Asian persimmon, for example).

By T-Rick

By HeidiLou

Well, here in Huntsville, Not far at all from Elkins where I saw a post from. And were pretty much in the heart of NW Ark. And today I opened 17 Persimmons ( and not one cut, that's a miracle in itself! LOL) Anyway, they were ALL SPOONS! And I read what that means, so i'm really going to be paying attention this winter and also checking a few more seeds. That was a kick!

By NannasBoy

I just asked my nanna. She said that Jesus made the persimmon so the apostles had desert with their fish and bread thing. The trick is to hold the seeds in your hand while walking on water. If you sink immediatly, the winter will cause at least two school closings, but if you sorta float for a split second before you sink, then you should hold your stock until spring and then sell only after confirming with a tarot card reader. (Don't use that Jackson girl, she caused our pastor to over-indulge with alcohol and we had to use a rabid coyote to expel the demons.)

By Rodneyelkins

By Jackblue

That's weird. Here in Rogers Ar, our persimmon seeds are shaped more like a bulldozer. One of those little dozers with the wire cage over the top, but sorta like it has antlers attached to the rear and some kind of mechanical arm protruding from the front like it's directing traffic or something. Not sure what that means...

By Crew

This is more signigicant than I first thought. Our ground hog, failing to see his shadow, grazed on some fruit that fell from our persimmon tree. He, too, saw the spoon shaped seeds and retreated at which time a black cat crossed his path and my uncle felt a pain in his knee. Considering that the crescent moon was tipped that 13th day of September (Friday), I hung a horse shoe upside down over our door and placed garlic around the perimiter of our property. To top it off, I held a four leaf clover over my heart while wishing upon a falling start so I think we are covered but lord have mercey on our neighborhood...

By Harry Hamilton

By Theresa Long

I check my Persimmon Seeds every year. Last year (2012) I got a Knife and a Spoon within several seeds, checking three seeds. It turned out winter was true to the tales, Bitterly Cold with Heavy Wet Snow.. This storm caused my power to go out for many days. Me and my dogs almost froze to death, until a friend and her brother came to get all of us in his 4WD. That was a blessing.

I opened two Persimmon Seeds this morning (August 28th, 2013), right off the tree, with one being ripe and the other green. Both Seeds had spoons. Looks like we are going to have another Heavy Wet Snow for this years winter in Mayflower, Arkansas.

By Peggyhackett

By HeidiLou

hi Peggy~ I got the same results, I couldn't believe they were all spoons, and 17 of them! I'm still also amazed that I didn't cut myself and need stitches. Those seeds can be difficult to get into and then you have to try not to destroy whatever utensil is in there that you're trying so desperately to see. I'm getting a little nervous about this winter. ugh But we'll see I guess.

By CNL

August 31, 2013: Hello Mayflower, AR from Hot Springs, AR! To our amazement, today we also found a ripe persimmon! Our seeds had three spoons! I would have expected to find a ripe one in October, but in August?! Hmmm . . .

By Sherryskym

By Rockholt

Cut open 30 seeds from ripe persimmons in my woods in upstate South Carolina. Found 8 knives, 22 spoons and 0 forks. We usually have a variety of snow and ice during the winter and this years looks to be about the same.

By Diane (Di Di)

Have cut open bunches of seeds of several trees. All spoons with the exception of a couple of knives. Most likely a cold, snowy winter. Have yet to see a wooly worm though. We had spoons last year in our seeds. Was an extremely mild winter and nary a snowflake flew. Would really like some snow this year. :) Located in SW MO.

By Alpaca Linda

By Michelinda

I have three friends on facebook, totally unrelated, that all live in in different places this tiny corner of NorthWest Arkansas. All three friends opened between 3 and 10 each - ALL were spoons. We NEED it. Kill the ticks and mice.

By Tdog

By Sleepy Maggie

Opened a few last night and they were all spoons - we live on the North Carolina piedmont. BTW: Be CAREFUL opening these things (she said, typing with a bandage on her thumb.) They are hard and slippery - I found it worked best to grip them with a paper towel while pushing straight down hard with the knife.

By pglizerd

By Oklahoma newbie

I just heard of this weather predicting technique yesterday from my mother and tonight I told my husband about it and he says we have a persimmon tree so I cut one open and 3 seeds were spoons, one was a knife, and one was a spoon and a knife.

Today in Hudson NC we cut 5 persimmons ALL SPOONS The larger one had a really big spoon so I predict 1 Blizzard in all this snow. I am ready, I can't wait. This held true last year and they are off the same tree so we will see.

By Andysouth

Thank you in Hudson Nc for sharing what u found. I aint sure i can find a persimmon tree here anymore. I live in Charlotte Nc. So ur weather forecast should be about the same as mine. Id prefer u to keep cuttin till u find it saying that we are going to have a mild winter like last year. But dont want u to waste all persimmons. Lol. Thanks again for sharing.

By Michelle P

By Ginger1

Not worth anything last winter. This is the first time the tree has let us down. No snow here but I don't think it was much of a winter anywhere in NC. I will post again this fall on this but I have my doubts for much of a winter my husband bought a new tractor.

Here in Oklahoma, we cut open ten seeds this year. All were spoons except one, which was a fork. Cutting open the seeds is a little harder than you might expect. A persimmon is a bittersweet fruit that grows on trees in the south.

By Suzie Watson

If you are going to eat a persimmon, make sure it is fully ripe. The sweetest ones will already be on the ground. If you have to pull it from the tree, it may not be ripe, in which case it will make your mouth pucker!

By Anon

By carrieroyalanderson

I cut open all 4 persimmon seeds and found the centers to reveal a spoon in each. We are actually hoping for a good winter because we barely got one last year and need a good one to kill off all the bugs and mosquitoes here in Texas!9/26/2012